The Globalization of the U.S. Food Supply

By: Jennifer Samios

In the United States today we have become accustomed to purchasing and eating just about any fresh fruit, vegetable, meat, fowl or fish that is available on the planet. These foods are available to us 12 months and 365 days a year. This availability was not always true. The globalization of the American food supply has made this availability possible. 

Nicolas Appert

200 years ago fresh fruits and vegetables were available only seasonally. In the fall when local Pennsylvania apples ripened on the tree they were available to the landowners and farmers that owned the trees. They were available for purchase in stores as long as the apples continued to ripen. The globalization of edible foods, according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canning actually started in 1809 during the Napoleonic Wars. The French Government offered a 12,000 franc award to any inventor who developed a method of preserving large amounts of food.  In 1809 Nicolas Appert developed the traditional sealed canning method, which could preserve foods for 1 to 5 years. (Picture to right is an Appert canning jar) In 1810 tin-plated cans were developed by Peter Durand that rivaled existing glass jar containers. In 1845 canned food was taken to the Arctic on a British expedition by Sir John Franklin. Developing urban populations across Europe and the U.S. fueled advanced development of canned foods. The first American canning factory was established in 1812 at New York City by Robert Ayers. He canned meat, oysters, fruits, and vegetables in newly-developed tin-plated wrought iron cans.

This picture shows how canned food was made

 Within the information found at http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blsteamship.htm I found the development of railroads and sailing vessels along with the invention of the Steamboat Engine in 1787 began the practical transportation of preserved foods over large geographical expanses. On the website http://www.birdseyefoods.com/loving_veggies_history.html, Clarence Birdseye was a “businessman, visionary, and innovator when it came to the transportation and preservation of fresh foods.” Birdseye began his career by purchasing fresh vegetables in California. He packed these vegetables on ice in railroad cars. Birdseye contracted with the railroads to speed these iced box cars to urban markets in the central and eastern United States. In 1926 Birdseye formed the General Seafood Corporation and developed the “Quick freeze Machine.” He also began purchasing and selling refrigerated display cases that were quickly purchased by retailers to display and make his frozen foods available to the public. In 1944 the Birdseye Corporation began leasing the newly developed refrigerated rail cars and began the large scale transportation of frozen foods across the country. 

Birdseye method of preparing food products

Today, advancements in refrigerated air cargo transportation, the advancement of refrigerated sea containerization, and the development of advanced logistics in all forms of transportation has allowed fresh foods to be transported from their source to markets across the globe. Advanced and developed countries like the United States have the economic power and wealth to take advantage of modern available transport methods. This modern day complete supply chain allows us to purchase fresh peaches from Argentina in the dead of winter. This same supply chain benefits developing country producers since their food production is available to viable consumers like the American public.

Works Cited

Bellis, Mary. "The History of Steamboats." Inventors. 2011. Web. 9 Mar. 2011.

         <http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blsteamship.htm>.

 "Canning." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 7 Mar. 2011. Web. 9 Mar. 2011.

        <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canning>.

"The History of Birds Eye." Birds Eye Shares Your Passion for All Things Vegetable. 

        Pinnacle Foods Group LLC, 2010. Web. 9 Mar. 2011. <http://www.birdseyefoods.com  

        /loving_veggies_history.html>.